Football-Player

NFL Concussion Litigation

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The NFL’s efforts to protect players from concussions and their after effects seem weak at best and nonexistent at worst. The league waited until 1994 to create the “Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Committee.” When selecting a doctor to chair the committee, Dr. Elliot Pellman was named, a rheumatologist with no certifications related to brain injuries or concussions.

During the next 14 years, the NFL’s Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Committee published numerous journal articles, including a summary piece released in 2006 analyzing data collected about mild TBIs received between 1996 and 2001 that concluded:

“Because a significant percentage of players returned to play in the same game [as they suffered a mild traumatic brain injury] and the overwhelming majority of players with concussions were kept out of football-related activities for less than 1 week, it can be concluded that mild TBIs in professional football are not serious injuries.”

This circular reasoning defies logic and implies a speedy return to play after concussion is an indicator of player health and not simply the result of poor guidance or decision making from the players. The same players who should not make medical judgments and may have impaired mental faculties at the time if the decision is made shortly after suffering a concussion.

A 2005 study by the Center for the Study of Retired Athletes found NFL players who suffered three or more concussions are five times more likely to have mild cognitive impairment and three times more likely to have significant memory loss when compared to players without a history of concussion. Despite this an other studies surrounding the short and long-term effects of concussions and TBIs, the NFL didn’t adopt league-wide concussion guidelines until 2007.

Jason Luckasevic is actively and passionately investigating and exploring cases for retired NFL players. To have your case included, call him at 412-471-3980 or contact him via email.

 

Source

Pellman EJ, Viano DC; National Football League’s Committee on Mild Traumatic Brain Injury. “Concussion in professional football: summary of the research conducted by the National Football League’s Committee on Mild Traumatic Brain Injury.” Neurosurgical Focus. 2006 Oct 15;21(4):E12.

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